My First Controversial Post

I have just returned from a trip to North Carolina for a wedding shower for a friend. While there I found myself if a heated conversation about relief efforts in New Orleans. I am so angry at the finger pointing that everyone is doing. This is not a time to be blaming and assessing. Why are we putting all of our resources and efforts into a response investigation a week from the date we were hit when we should be focusing on those people who need to be housed, clothed, fed, and hydrated? We need to be concerned about families who are still missing or separated. Other issues we need to center on are the diseases that are developing in the area and how we can prevent the spread. Headlines on Fox news read "What Went Wrong?" A friggin' Category 5 Hurricane hit the gulf coast, that's what went wrong. A natural disaster happened. No one predicted the destruction of this storm. Yes, the situation is very sad and the amount of time it took to rescue people was extensive and chaotic. But is it really the Bush Administrations fault that New Orleans failed to implement the evacuation plans? For as long as I have lived on the Gulf Coast, the media has done it's best to warn us all of the arrival of hurricane season and how to prepare ourselves if a storms is heading our way. There are hundreds of warnings every summer of the potential dangers of attempting to ride out a storm. Stop the blaming, just help.

"The key to successful implementation is people. Everyone of us has a responsibility to become informed of the risks we face, to make wise decisions to keep ourselves out of harm’s way and when we cannot, to possess the knowledge needed to act responsibly when disasters occur."
- FEMA FY03-08 Strategic Plan